(USA/Update) Revive Us again! - Report on 2020 Mid-Atlantic Region Summer Bible Conference

by UBF HQ   08-11-2020   0 reads

The joint summer Bible conference for the Mid-Atlantic chapters was held virtually on July 16-19, 2020. The theme of the conference was "Revive Us Again!" The preparation committee chose the theme and Bible passages after two rounds of consulting with UBF members in the region. About 250 registered to participate in the conference through Zoom, and some others joined the programs and the Sunday worship service through a live stream. Belize UBF members joined the conference, thanks to the new virtual format of the conference. God blessed the four messages, three world mission reports (Taiwan, Argentina and Zambia), eleven interest group sessions, and 27 group bible studies, along with special music and prayer fellowships. Many people served the conference behind the scenes to prepare and run the programs.

On the first evening, N*ateTurnock (Philadelphia) delivered a message "Here I Am I stand at the Door and Knock" based on Revelation 3:14-22. On the second evening, K*eaganCallis (Washington) delivered a message entitled "Repentance in Ephesus" on Acts 19:13-20. On the third day, P*aulSambuco (Baltimore I) delivered a message "Revival at Mizpah" on 1 Samuel 7:2-17. For the Sunday worship, S*tephenGan (Lehigh) delivered a message titled "Preach the Word in Season and out of Season" based on 2 Timothy 4:1-5. Through the messages, we were challenged to examine our hearts and renew our relationship with the Lord by repenting our sins and complacency in order to experience a spiritual revival. We were encouraged to preach the gospel in season or out of season instead of worrying about the uncertainty of this world. The Lord challenged us to preach the gospel by finding creative ways in the midst of social distancing caused by the pandemic. 

On Saturday afternoon, we had 11 interest group sessions led by leaders from several UBF chapters, with various topics such as indepth Bible study (including inductive bible study and introduction to biblical Greek and Hebrews), discipleship, the pandemic (including its impact on campus mission), family worship, biblical marriage, and professional career for young people. The sessions were well prepared to meet the target audience's needs. On each evening, we had the privilege to hear the world mission report prepared by Msn. S*teve and A*llisonHaga of Taiwan, Msn. R*uthKim from Argentina, and Msn. C*yrilBoyd of Zambia. We were thankful for the work of God in their ministries. We also learned about their prayer topics and prayed for them. To be able to hear mission reports from far-away nations was a benefit of the virtual conference.

At the Sunday worship service, a special offering was collected and sent to UBF HQ to assist the missionaries who are suffering financially due to the pandemic.

One notable thing about this conference was that young and mature leaders worked together from the beginning. Half of the preparation committee members were under 40 years of age and from several different chapters. And more than half of the servants who served the conference with planning and running various programs were leaders under 40 years old. For example, S*usanYun from Washington UBF played a significant role as a student leader of the media team who planned and ran Zoom meetings and the live-stream broadcasting. The online interest groups provided a good model for us to reach out to students when in-person meetings are not possible. They showed that if relevant topics are tailored for college students, this platform can become an effective model for campus evangelism during the pandemic.